Gary Louris and Mark Olson left Jayhawks fans in a lurch when they parted ways rather abruptly in 1995. Turns out Olson had tired of all the obligations and trappings that came with the Minneapolis-spawned group’s hard-won success. So he escaped to the Mojave Desert to ply a rootsier, salt-of-the-earth trade with the help of wife Victoria Williams. Ah, but time—and perhaps a little fiscal motivation—has a way of smoothing over the rough patches in many productive creative partnerships. (Unless you’re Bob Mould and Grant Hart.) And 15 years later, the Jayhawks have returned to us more-or-less fully intact. For how long, no one really knows, but they just did a string of shows to back the enhanced reissues of 1992’s Hollywood Town Hall and 1995’s Tomorrow The Green Grass (American/Legacy). With their sugary (if unrefined) harmonies, rugged intelligence and casual accessibility, the albums are to the alt-country movement what One Of These Nights and Hotel California were to ’70s SoCal country rock—even if the comparably modest sales figures may not indicate as much. Louris and Olson will be guest editing magnetmagazine.com all week. Read our brand new Q&A with Louris.
Olson: In Oslo, Norway, lives Ingunn Ringvold. I have played with a lot of drummers; obviously, since I am a folk/rock musician, that kind of thing happens. Nobody is as good as Ingunn Ringvold. She plays the djembe. She doesn’t rock the kit; she doesn’t need to. The djembe is her main groove. She is a wonder to behold. Ingunn has been in recording studios off and on her whole life. She has a beautiful voice and was the lead singer in a Norwegian choir that sang at the Nobel Peace Prize ceremony. She has a new album out called Tea Leaves. The Norwegian government is placing it in all the public libraries in Norway. When Ingunn plays the djembe, all the woman play along. You can look out and see that happening—it’s great!
Video after the jump.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Hjt5iYMtSow
